Publican put in spotlight by mysterious posters

An Ennis publican has been unwittingly thrust into the political spotlight after election posters bearing his image mysteriously appeared around the town.

Totally unimpressed by the actions of an unknown person or persons, Mark Kelly has been work feverishly over the past two days to locate and remove the posters in the Clare town.

He believes someone has gone to great trouble and expense to have the plastic placards produced but is adamant he doesn’t know who. The posters shows a picture of Mr Kelly sitting at a piano and his name at the top. They describe him as running as an independent candidate with a slogan at the bottom saying: “No strings attached”.

This is thought to be a quirky reference to the fact Mr Kelly appears to be playing the piano in the photo. It’s believed the picture may have been taken from his Facebook page.

The publicity-shy publican confirmed he was not running for Clare County Council and has never had any interest in entering politics.

“I have no idea who’s behind this and I don’t think it’s funny at all. I’ve been getting calls all day and as soon as I hear there is one somewhere, I have to take it down,” Mr Kelly said.

“Someone is obviously having a joke at my expense but I don’t know who yet,” he said.

While strict rules govern election posters, Clare County Council says Mr Kelly will not face any action over these placards.